


Hands

by MachineryField



Category: Xenoblade Chronicles
Genre: Fear of Death, Gen, Post-Game AU
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-15
Updated: 2020-05-15
Packaged: 2021-03-02 18:09:00
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 334
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24201106
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MachineryField/pseuds/MachineryField
Summary: Shulk and Egil's second handshake runs into problems of its own.
Comments: 2
Kudos: 15





	Hands

Shulk held out a hand to Egil, the two having decided to try once again to shake on peace. Shulk was nervous, remembering what had happened the last time, and Egil seemed just as tense… But Dickson was gone, if there was a chance of this going well, it was now.

Egil reached out his hand, pulling it back a bit as it hovered near Shulk’s. Shulk couldn’t blame him, really, he wanted to pull his own back every moment he held it out. But he held strong, and soon enough their hands touched.

As they began to shake, though, the world went black.

Shulk froze, unable to see anything. It was like then, like back then… His heart caught in his throat, and a scream ripped out of his body, full of the fear of death that grasped at him.

“What’s wrong, why are you screaming?” Egil’s hand pulled from his own and landed on his shoulder, firm, almost planting him to the spot. “Are you alright?”

“I… I…” The scream died down and he swallowed hard, placing his hands on the chest in front of him. Trying to ground himself. “I’m not dead?”

“No, you aren’t, the lights just went out.” Another hand, this one on his face. “You can feel my hand on your face, can’t you? You’re alive, very much so.”

Shulk was still shaking a bit, placing a hand over Egil’s, his other still firmly planted on his chest. “I can feel your hand, I’m alive…”

“Mmhmm…” Egil began to pull Shulk along by his shoulder. “How about we get you into the light.”

Shulk allowed himself to go along, lower lip quivering. “That… that would be nice.”

Egil released his shoulder and grabbed his hand again, though this time there was no shaking. Just holding it; a firm grasp that helped keep Shulk down in reality and out of the fear that had been eating at him. He returned the grasp, and walked with Egil into the light.


End file.
